Mitchell 408 S

werpmolens · Post by **werpmolens** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 4:50 pm

Hello Collectors,

For my collection ultra light reels I look for a Mitchell 408S in good condition.

Not sold in Europe so who can help me out?

Jan

Post by **john elder** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 6:22 pm

Jan...What's the "S" designation mean?

Araye50 · Post by **Araye50** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:05 pm

My guess would be "the S designation" stands for Skirted Spool.

SWIM JIG · Post by **SWIM JIG** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:16 pm

jump usa The 408s is probably means SKIRTED SPOOL, these are a wee bit hard to find, its a ultra litemade ariound 1985! Bens price guide has it listed as one, a 1985 amd extreamly rare in the 3rd edition and in his 2002 book as a 1988 reel at $300.00 again with gold letering thats raised. and the skirted spool! NOW good hunting! and again condition is everything! Kind of Like buying OATS! they are one price, however once they pass thru the horse? they are a lot less per bushel, I would advise to make certain that you get the reel with a garrentee, its most likly a rather eazy one to convert to the higher end reel! Do your homework! col. Milton lorens aka swim jig of ohio

Post by **john elder** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:23 pm

ah...thanks, guyz...like this one:

lifted from the 'bay...308S here..

Learn something every day!

Gone · Post by **Gone** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:13 am

The photo above is mine and as stated; a Mitchell 308S. Pretty hard to find, very popular as collectables and fishing reels. There's also a 309S shown, very hard to find. The 408S is extremely hard to find, the 409S doesn't exist that we know of.

Jan, I've been looking for a 408S for years. Start looking again because these were originally made in France by Mitchell Sports beginning 1984 and not ever distributed by Browning which tells me Euro release is highly likely. I agree the "S" is for skirted spool as all the other Mitchell S series of this very same period.

There were other skirted made prior to this series (late seventies) but did not have the letter S engraved such as the Mitchell 900. The Mitchell 304S was introduced in the late sixties but was not a skirted spool. It's is believed this one stood for "salt" due to several sealing improvements such as a rubber gasket between the handle shank axis and main gear drive. I'd add pics if I could figure it out?

Post by **john elder** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 8:04 am

Wallace: thanks for the stolen pic. I just copied it from your auction and put it on a free pic hosting website (the orca board has no hosting capability at present). You put pics on a host, copy the url and paste into your message...then you "select" ("highlight") the url and hit the "Img" button above the message window...your pic will appear in the message. If you need any other assistance, just email me and I'll talk you down.

Can you tell us (me, since I'm probably the only one reading the thread that's so clueless) more about the development/use of the skirted spool? Was it developed primarily to prevent dirt entering the reel? heat dispersal?

werpmolens · Post by **werpmolens** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 8:30 am

Hello,

Thanks for the replys, yes S stands for Skirted spool.
Only e few model made by Mitchell ( ultralight) , 308S, 408S and the 908 series.

Nice reels .
But I think they where only sold in the US and Canada.
Never seen one here in Europe.
Thanks for the pictures I have seen that auction but the seller did not want a bid from a buyer out ot the US .

Otherwise I had shot that one, I know they are rare, but if somebody knows one for sale please contact me.

Jan

Gone · Post by **Gone** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 10:53 am

Hi Jan, I didn't know they were only sold here and Canada. Wonder why? Have you ever seen a 408S? That reel shown is mine, and it is available to Europe but it's not an auction; can't afford to take a beating. If you want it, you know I want one of your clear plastic models, really cool! Hint-Hint Can you show one here?

John, No worries and not stolen. One of my "fun" things is sharing pics and info so anyone can take what they want or can. Jan will tell you; little records were kept intact on Mitchell so most historical information comes from old photographs, advertisements, schematics and fortunately; old friends who worked there and unfortunately speculation which over the years somehow become facts.

Yes, the skirted spool was primarily for two known reasons; to help keep contamination out and a "new" look for Mitchell. I speculate it was also one of Mitchell's final attempts to compete prior to being forced to close assembly in France in 1988.

Jan, do you agree? When I'm writing in a Jan Haanstra post; I'm the puppy, he's the big dog!

werpmolens · Post by **werpmolens** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:46 pm

Hello,

Sold on eBay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mitchell-408-S_W0QQ ... dZViewItem

Gone · Post by **Gone** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 3:20 pm

The 308S picture above was mine I thought you were asking about, didn't know about this one. Too Bad

Reel Geezer · Post by **Reel Geezer** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 4:28 pm

A couple of comments from someone who knows nothing about this subject: 1) Why don't you have someone on this board, or some other friend, bid for you on an auction like that? 2) I switched to skirted spool spinning reels in the early 1960s (Ru) because they stopped the line from going under the spool, which was a very common problem in the old days. I never had a problem with any other stuff getting between the spool and cup.

piscesman · Post by **piscesman** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 8:16 pm

The 408s were released to the public via Bass Pro Shops in the mid 1980's central USA & Canada. They weren't authorized to be sold and were pulled from the market shortly after. Something to with infringement. Can't go into detail on that as a promise. Please respect that. I have a reel complete with serial a number and a NOS body. You can't build a reel from NOS unless you find the proper rotor to go with the body. It has the gold lettering as the 308s has the silver. Almost impossible to find. I know of 1 person who has 2 in boxes. Hope this helps.
Kim

Mitchell 408 S

Mitchell 408 S

a rather hard to find reel!